Song of the Day 9/9/08: Tycho - The Daydream

It strikes me as counterintuitive to hail crispness and separation as the most compelling elements in an ambient piece of music. What we expect from the genre is not necessarily an indistinguishable wash of instruments, but an atmosphere in which any one tone is nestled in the arms of at least two or three others, with each codependent on the rest to deliver any sort of impact. "The Daydream," on the other hand, is proof of Tycho's dedication to the song as a lifeform made of autonomous parts – a guitar line that pops as if plucked by insect legs; tropical padwork with chord shifts accented by filtered bells; a slight scuttle of percussive clacking that stands apart from the central drums, rather than sinking helplessly into them. The end result still conjures whichever immersive metaphor you prefer – a rainforest, let's say, but one composed of an intricate web of plants and animals, in which the extinction of any single species would cause the ecosystem to collapse. Fortunately, Tycho's keen ear for balance makes this song a wonder to behold.

Get the single from the Tycho Shop, which includes high quality mp3s of "The Daydream" and "The Disconnect." Stay tuned for the full length from Ghostly International.

[ play ] | [ download mp3 ] Tycho - The Daydream

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